Border Crossing by Tomasz Bajer

27th September 2008 on Northumberland Street, Newcastle Upon Tyne.

Tomasz Bajer was selected by ISIS arts to for a three-month residency at ISIS Arts, Newcastle Upon Tyne. The residency formed part of 'At Home in Europe', partly funded by Newcastle City Council, which aim was to provide the space for international artists to consider what it means to be at Home in Europe.

Tomasz Bajer, based in Wroclaw Poland is a multimedia artist, his artworks includes objects, actions, installations and graphic design. Tomasz' practice is focused around notions of identity set against ideas of nationality and social class. More information on Tomasz' practice can be found at www.bajer_tomasz.free.art.pl/

During his residency Tomasz has developed a project with the working title Border Crossing, a video installation in a public space looking at the issue of identity and migration.

Border Crossing is a plywood construction with an entrance and an exit. Inside the construction, by using barriers, a gateway is created, similar to those one can find at the airports. A film will also be shown inside, the film consists of short interviews with people of migrant background who are currently living in Newcastle. On the pavement outside the construction a line is drawn to create an illusion of a border so that a border will symbolically divide the street itself.

The public will enter the construction and will have to find their way along the barrier which will metaphorically be forcing them to cross the border and find an entrance to the new world. While doing so the public will have an opportunity to listen to emigrants talking about themselves and their new life in England.

In terms of construction Border Crossing makes a symbolic reference to Hadrian's Wall, which was built by the Roman Emperor to keep barbarians from Scotland out of Roman Empire, and also to other barriers, which exist in many other countries such as China, Iran, Israel or USA.

Plywood is used to make an allusion to simple, temporary construction that often appear at the border crossings. The film inside aims at depicting social and political problems of emigrants and the complexity of the integration processes.